“The Restaurant Guy” and Jimmy Frischling “The Finance Guy” are joined by Josh Kern, CEO of SPB Hospitality.

Josh shares his experiences from his time in politics to working in the marketing sector for high-profile brands like Quiznos, Outback, and American Blue Ribbon Holdings. The trio discuss the challenges of running a restaurant business, the use of AI in drive-thrus, the impacts of inflation and supply chain issues on pricing, and how technological advances are changing the industry.

Listen to this episode for discussion about how the role of CMO is evolving, the game of Frogger, and Josh’s special love for craps.

Key Takeaways:

(1:19) Going from politics to joining Quiznos.

(3:04) SPB Hospitality background - formerly CraftWorks Holdings, now 16 brands and 590 restaurants.

(8:49) The journey from legislative aide to Quiznos marketing team.

(15:04) Leadership style compares to playing craps.

(24:51) Testing AI drive-thru technology at Krystal, but still a bit "bleeding edge" and clunky.

(28:16) On the industry being "tough" - supply chain volatility and inflation as main challenges.

(37:01) Pricing elasticity limits amid inflation - a tipping point has been reached.

(40:39) Flying on Air Force One?

(43:22) David Letterman, Stoney River, LA, London, and a quickfire round.

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In today's episode of Hospitality Hangout, Michael Schatzberg “The Restaurant Guy” and Jimmy Frischling “The Finance Guy” are joined by Josh Kern, CEO of SPB Hospitality.

Josh shares his experiences from his time in politics to working in the marketing sector for high-profile brands like Quiznos,